About the fallen
angels of the Seven Signs...

In the heat of battle
or the darker fires of passion, these mighty angel
warriors sinned against heaven. But in these dark
days, heaven knows it can't afford to waste good
talent. Instead of burning in hell, the fallen
warriors were cast to earth, and became the
Tainted. Neither damned nor saved, the Tainted
Host remain chained in heavenly servitude, their
souls held to ransom, bound to fight against evil
for a chance at redemption.

Disavowed by their archangel, Michael, yet called
upon in times of catastrophe, the Tainted Host do
heaven's dirty work, and they're not above using
dirty tactics to win. What's the point of being
shunned if you can't break a few rules? But when
you're already fallen, there's a fine line between
having a little fun and eternal damnation…

Luniel ~
Hot-blooded, impulsive, fascinated by new
experiences, Luniel used to immerse himself in the
human world with relish. But when once he loved a
human woman, his demon enemies seduced her and
stole her soul, taunting him for failing to
protect her. Shunned by heaven for the sin of
lust, Lune is determined never to let his heart be
his weakness again.

Japheth ~
Beautiful and incorruptible, a powerful warrior
for justice, Japheth was once heaven's golden
child. Now shunned for some mysterious sin, he's
determined to redeem himself in heaven's eyes, and
avoids temptation or earthly pleasures lest he
fall again. He's sworn to do anything for
redemption, and he's got an iron will and nothing
to lose, so don't get in his way.

Ariel ~ Once a
die-hard believer, Ariel is bitter that angels
take second place to humans in heaven's plan.
Shunned for his envy, he despises humans for
weak-hearted hypocrites, too easily tempted while
they pray for salvation—but if he has to fight for
their souls in order to save the Host from
oblivion, he will. Just don't expect him to be
gracious about it.

Dashiel ~
An almighty warrior who lives for the fight and
relishes the party afterwards. After centuries of
laying waste to cities and murdering thousands to
deliver heaven's wrath, only more killing can
stave off the darkness in his dreams. Shunned for
his greed for slaughter—despised for the very
deeds for which heaven birthed him—Dash harbors
only anger and lust for victory in his heart.

Iria ~ The
femme fatale
of holy vengeance. Once the voice of reason in
heaven's crusade, Iria believed that the end
doesn't always justify the means. Yet when she
dared to question a deceitful archangel, she was
shunned for the sin of rebellion. Now bitter and
disillusioned, Iria has abandoned the moral high
ground, and counts seduction and temptation among
her weapons against evil.

Jadzia ~ A
young warrior who once aspired to holy greatness,
Jadzia was shunned for cowardice in the face of
the enemy, because she once froze in a moment of
compassion while battling starving demons. Even
though the Host respect her as their own, Jadzia
is terrified she'll fail again. She's determined
to harden her heart, and hones her fighting skills
to the point of obsession.

Trillium ~
Crafty, practical, and wise in the ways of the
mortal world, of all the Tainted Trillium is the
most human. He sees no reason for angels to play
fair when the opposition doesn't, and uses
charisma and a glib tongue to win allies. Shunned
for his greed in collecting worldly goods and
followers, Trill can call in favors from tycoons,
mobsters and street rats alike, mustering friends
and allies for the Host's crusade.

Their leader...

Michael, the
Archangel ~ Unbeaten in battle since the
dawn of time, Michael is heaven's most formidable
weapon. But jaded and cynical after thousands of
years fighting evil, only to see it rise again,
Michael knows too well that virtue doesn't always
triumph over vice. His Tainted Host can cross
dangerous ethical lines that Michael himself,
bound by heaven's rules, cannot. If he has to
resort to their dirty tactics to thwart Azaroth's
plans, he will—then again, what's the rush? After
all, Michael has already defeated the Devil once.
There's no harm in bringing on the Apocalypse
early, so long as the right side wins…

And their adversary...

Azaroth, the
Demon King, Lord of Emptiness and Despair ~
Ambitious, cunning, the master of lies. Azaroth
knows that in this age of sin and terror, hell's
victory in the Final Battle has never been more
certain. He's determined to bring on the End while
the odds are good. And he'll take special delight
in tormenting his arch-enemy, Michael, and those
weak-willed hypocrites, the Tainted Host.
'Tainted' is only one crafty lie away from
'traitor', and a posse of hell's angels would make
a wonderful gift for Azaroth's dark master. But
after walking the earth for millennia, Az's
catalogue of damned souls—and his capacity for
evil—have grown beyond measure. Maybe, once he's
released the Devil from eternal captivity, he and
the big D need to have a chat about who's in
charge…

Site and text copyright (c) 2010 Erica Hayes.
Header photo by Daniel Schwen, shared under
Creative Commons license.
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